Simon - first thread, newly diagnosed

Gilladian

Gilladian

Member Since 2025
He is way low this morning, calling vet - no symptoms. Gave treats. Simon's insulin spreadsheet 2025-6
Edit: vet had us feed immediately, said no dose tonight, half dose tomorrow morning. We check blood again in an hour, go to vet at once if any symptoms of hypoglycemia show up.
 
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squeem3 said:
Your thread on Health:
New here- Confused about feeding schedule

Just confirming a few things: are you using U40 syringes? Are you measuring 1 unit of insulin correctly? What symptoms did you see that prompted a trip to the vet and diabetes diagnosis? Was a fructosamine test done?
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We are using the U40 syringes the vet gave us. He had a test at the vet with bloodsugar about 740. He was lethargic, not eating very much, probably vomited in the night, generally acting withdrawn, drinking more than normal. They gave him fluids as he was mildly dehydrated, and told us he was diabetic. We got the diagnosis on monday, gave first shot Weds morning, and here we are now.
 
The fact that he was at 150 at the vet doe not mean the 48 you got earlier was an incorrect reading.
Numbers can fluctuate wildly. That said please please make sure you always feed low numbers and then check again 30 minutes later. Hypo is often asymptomatic so the fact that he looked “ok” does not mean anything.
 
Gilladian said:
He ate most of a small can. Resting comfy on the bed now.
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When he is below 50 on a human meter, you need to feed high carb food and test again in 15-20 minutes to make sure BG is rising. You keep monitoring until the BG is above 50 AND rising on its own without the influence of food. You must keep testing very frequently and if the BG starts dropping back down below 50 you give more high carb food. As the BG rises you can gradually extend the time between testing and reduce the amount of carbs being fed back down to lower carb food.
 
Okay. I told you yesterday I thought his dose was too high based on your test.

If he were my cat I would either (1) cut his dose in half to .5 units and keep testing to see how it goes, or (2) stop insulin altogether and test for a few days to see what his BG numbers are with no insulin and then make decisions based on that information.

Just because his BG was 150 at the vet doesn’t mean that he didn’t drop too low at home. Stress elevates BG so naturally it would be higher at the vet. In addition, there was a time lapse giving his BG plenty of time to rise.
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
Okay. I told you yesterday I thought his dose was too high based on your test.

If he were my cat I would either (1) cut his dose in half to .5 units and keep testing to see how it goes, or (2) stop insulin altogether and test for a few days to see what his BG numbers are with no insulin and then make decisions based on that information.

Just because his BG was 150 at the vet doesn’t mean that he didn’t drop too low at home. Stress elevates BG so naturally it would be higher at the vet. In addition, there was a time lapse giving his BG plenty of time to rise.
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I followed vet instructions and skipped last night’s dose. This morning a half dose. New cat appropriate monitor is here and I will test at 10 am and noon (+4 and +6). I cannot test until I have a second person to help as the cat is strong, hates being held, and I am not strong. The test at vets was several hours later.
 
Gilladian said:
The test at vets was several hours later.
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Okay. So that’s accounts for the BG rising. It definitely doesn’t mean that your low reading was inaccurate.

You don’t need a pet meter. What did you buy? An Alpha Trak or a different per meter? It’s fine, except you will spend a lot more money on test strips than you would with something like the ReliOn meter from Walmart.
 
I definitely do NOT recommend taking him back up to the same 1 unit dose that just sent him too low! I would keep the dose at .5 units and gather test data to see how low the .5 unit dose is taking him. If you return to the 1 unit dose, you will risk the same thing happening again.

Would you please write the name of your handheld glucometer that you will be using into your signature? It’s important information to have there. Also indicate that you are using a Libre sensor if you are.
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
Okay. So that’s accounts for the BG rising. It definitely doesn’t mean that your low reading was inaccurate.

You don’t need a pet meter. What did you buy? An Alpha Trak or a different per meter? It’s fine, except you will spend a lot more money on test strips than you would with something like the ReliOn meter from Walmart.
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Alphatrak 3
 
Gilladian said:
I cannot test before his morning shot. I am alone at that time and he struggles too much for me to handle. This is overwhelming for me. I feel like I amfailing him.
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And please don’t feel like you’re failing at all. You cannot expect to be an expert at this right away. There’s so much to learn and get accustomed to. It takes time. You have already done an amazing job. Not every cat will let their caregiver test at first, although many who won’t allow it in the beginning begin to associate it with treats and later will allow it. Just that you have gotten some tests is HUGE. Don’t beat yourself up! You do not deserve that!
 
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